The speech, the kiss and the future
by Dreamworldstorymaker- ONE-SHOT
Summary: The golden trio are making a speech that is being told to the wizarding community. Hermione decided to change hers after she finds herself staring into a set of chestnut brown eyes. "So is that a yes?" He jokes and I let out a puff of giggles. "That is one mighty hell of a yes." I agree before I kiss him again.


"The war is over." Harry states at the end of his speech to the wizarding community. Ron and I are standing behind him, being the support system Harry needs to carry on with his speech. It has been a week since Voldermort died. Newspapers, magazines and everyone around me is so elated that the war is over but I can't help but think that they are wrong. The war isn't over; families have been ruined, homes have been wrecked and the general lifelessness of the places around us is depressing. People all say that it will get better with time but it won't. I will never forget the death of Albus or Hedwig or Moody or Tonks or Lupin or Fred or Snape or Dobby. I couldn't even say which one is the most heroic or inspirational because they all layed their life down for someone they cared about or for a cause that they felt so strongly for. I sometimes catch myself going off to find Hedwig to make him fly a letter out or finding Albus so he can tell me some more information or asking George where Fred is because they are always together. There were very few people who didn't hold the act that everything in the world is going to be fine. I was one of them. Of course I couldn't voice my opinions out loud; I was part of the golden trio and we were meant to be leading the positive thinking. Ron was fine with how things were now. Instead of thinking about his feeling about Fred's death he would go out and drink until he was pretty much obliviated and sleep with any girl that he could catch. Of course that meant pretty much every girl as he was part of the 'Golden Trio'. I didn't even care what he did with the other girls; Ron and mines relationship ended as soon as the war was over and we had completely different goals and opinions. I wanted to go back to Hogwarts; he wanted to go and get drunk. He thought that everything was hunky dory after the war; I realised how much we still have yet to do. He wanted to go straight into a relationship, getting married and having children; I wanted to build up my career and have some fun before settling down. He never pressurised me for marriage and children but he hinted at it a lot of the time. I'm just glad that we ended as friends and not anything else. The newspapers speculated that Ron cheated on me with another woman and that was why we broke up. It wasn't a stupid theory considering he was out every night 'partying' it up. Other papers thought he was only going out every night to forget about me breaking up with him. That was also a fair theory, it was just neither of them were the right ones. He only drank to forget about Fred. I can't even imagine what it must be like to lose his brother like that, fighting against evil. I feel bad for Ron but my full sympathy goes to George. Loosing not only your brother or your best friend but to lose your twin must be horrific. They were always together and now they can't carry on the jokes store together, they can't prank one of their brothers until they go bright red. They can't do anything together anymore because that would mean that Fred was alive. And George knows better that anyone else that Fred is long dead because he was there when Fred died; he saw that wall collapse onto his twin's body. I can't even fathom the pain that George feels at night. He moved back to the Borrow last week, said he couldn't stand being alone in the flat, I walked past his room one night and the light was one. He told me that he couldn't sleep without the light being on- he got terrible nightmares about Fred; my heart broke at the news. It was the first night I had slept in his bed and I have been doing it every night since. He says that I make the nightmares come less often and when I am there I can make him come out of the nightmares a bit easier. I don't care how I help him, just as long as I help him.

"Thank you for listening. Now it is time for Hermione to speak." Harry announces and my eyes snap around to meet his. I have been so focused on my thoughts that I haven't heard a word that Harry has just said. Good thing I have heard it loads of times before or else this could have been imagining. I take small steps up to the mike and harry brushes his hand against my arm in comfort.

"Hello," I start awkwardly. "So Voldermort is dead." I state and the crowd start cheering. I don't mean for them to cheer but I expect it. My eyes catch the ginger hair in the second row and I just stare into the eyes that have grown so familiar to me over the last week. George is pleading at me to finally tell the crowd what I think. With one look into his broken chestnut brown eyes I knew he wanted me to just break free from being the good girl and finally tell people what I think. With a great big breath I finally told the world what I have been keeping away. "I have only told one person what I am about to say so apologies if my thoughts aren't gathered completely." I pause and fix my eyes only on Georges. It is much easier confessing things to him than to a whole nation. "I am happy that the war is over. I am happy that I don't have to really think about what I say; having to not say certain words because it could link me to a particular group or someone could find me. I am happy that I don't have to keep looking over my shoulder to make sure that Voldermort on a death eater isn't about to kill me. But I don't understand why people are pretending that what is happened is truly behind us. People died. People died to make sure that we could live a free life without evil prejudice being there. They died for the cause that we are standing in right now. They didn't ask to be remembered but does that mean that they shouldn't be? The people who have died for freedom I will never forget! Cedric Diggory, Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, Refulus Black, Alastor Moody, Dobby, Lavender Brown, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Severus Snape, Fred Weasley and so many others. These were the ones that meant the most to me and I bet you have your own. I don't understand why we can't greave for the people that we have lost when it will make a dramatic impact on our future. We all understand that the world is changing for the better but that does not mean that we have to carry on pretending that what happened in the war didn't affect us emotionally.

"I know I am not supposed to be saying this. I am a 'heroine' according to the public and that means that I should be saying what I think. I don't conform to what the Ministry want; that is why I am speaking today. If I had conformed then part of the fight against Tom Riddle wouldn't have happened. So I am going to tell you all what I think; no matter how much trouble it gets me into. I have seen people at their lowest after the war. I understand what the war has does to families, friends and relationships. The magical world doesn't need us to be pretending that everything is good because that means that we are sticking our heads in the sand like last time. When Voldermort was reappearing no one really did anything about it. Tom Riddle was allowed to do what he wanted and that was why he became so powerful again. I am going to tell the world that I am still healing from what has happened from the war. I sometimes forget that they are dead and I go to talk to them before realising they aren't there. It has been over 6 months since the last killing curse has been uttered and I still get nightmares about the people that I have lost. I am not near ready to be okay about telling my part in the war. I don't want to remember the things that I have put up with. I know that the events of the last three years will never leave me and I am okay with that. I am happy to remember the people who died for our freedom. I am fine to openly talk to them to whoever wishes to talk to me about them. I want them to look down at me and think 'hey Hermione is doing well and I am proud of her.' That is my dream and I am doing my damn hardest to try and get there.

"I hope I haven't drowned on too long for you but I want you to know that what you are feeling is normal and that everyone else around you is feeling it as well. I would also like to announce that at the end of the school year I will be opening a session group every Wednesday so that anyone who would like to talk about their problems can. I have done it inside Hogwarts and it has become a very successful idea with people making new friends, getting better in school and just generally wearing a bigger smile out around the school. Thank you for listening and just try to remember that we might be a small community but we all feel the same." I do a tiny bow. The whole room is ablaze with clapping, shouts and whistling. Two arms wrap around me and both Ron and Harry are looking down at me proudly.

"Well done Hermione; I knew you could do it." Harry congratulates and Ron just nods his head.

"We have been waiting for ages for you to finally say what you have been thinking." Ron teases and I just swat his chest.

"Yeah well one of us needed to do it and neither of you were brave enough." I tease back. I look back over to the crowd and just behind the flashes of the cameras, from the reporters, is a teary red head. I walk out of Harry and Ron's embraces and down the steps towards the crowd. I pass people and make my way over to the man I have been sharing a bed with for the last week. We are standing a few centimetres apart now and I brush his tears away.

"Well done." He says through a watery smile.

"I couldn't have done it without you." I tell him back truthfully.

"You would have been able to say it eventually." His hand rests on my cheek and his thumb strokes the pinkness on my cheeks.

"I guess that doesn't matter. All I know is that I wouldn't have had the confidence without you being there to help me today." I look down at our feet to embarrassed to say it to his face. I guess it is weird how I can tell the crowd how I am feeling but I can't tell George my gratitude to him. I guess over the last week I have grown to really love George. The way that his eyes are like the key to his soul and he only lets certain people access. Or the way that his fiery ginger hair is so smooth that it feels like you are touching silk. His finger curl under my chin and he moves it so he can look into my eyes.

"I really like you Hermione and I would love to give it a try with you." He announces and I am so shocked that all I can think about doing is to kiss the rosy lips that I have dreamed about for the last 6 months. My mouth crashes onto his and it doesn't even take him a second to respond. His arms come around me and bring me flush against him; my own arms wrap around his neck and start stroking the ends of his hair. Eventually we pull apart due for the need of air and we rest our foreheads together.

"So is that a yes?" He jokes and I let out a puff of giggles.

"That is one mighty hell of a yes." I agree before I kiss him again.

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**A/N: Thank you for reading this story. Please review so you can tell me what you like and what I need to improve. I do actually listen so please do write something :) I don't actually believe that Fred is dead but his idea has been stuck in my head for a long time and so I needed to write it out, so please don't hate me for killing him. **

**Also some of you might tell me that Lavender Brown isn't dead but on wiki it says that she was savaged by Greyback. Anyways thanks again for reading, hope you enjoyed it, and if there is anything you want to ask then please review or pm me; I am friendly! **

**-Dreamworldstorymaker :D**


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